Estrogens mediate multiple complex physiological responses throughout the body. The responses are in turn mediated through the binding of estrogen to receptors. The classical receptors for steroids such as estrogen are soluble cytoplasmic/nuclear proteins that function as transcription factors. These receptors are known as estrogen receptor alpha and beta (two closely related proteins) that mediate transcriptional activity as well as rapid cellular signaling. GPR30 is a 7-transmembrane G protein-coupled receptor that has previously been suggested by Filardo et al., to mediate estrogen-dependent signal transduction. We have recently demonstrated that GPR30 is an intracellular protein, found in the endoplasmic reticulum, which binds estrogen with high affinity (Kd ˜6 nM) and mediates rapid cellular responses including calcium mobilization and phosphatidylinositol 3,4,5 trisphosphate production in the nucleus.
The current invention is in the field of molecular biology/pharmacology and provides compounds which modulate the effects of GPR30 as well as the classical estrogen receptors alpha and beta (ERα and ERβ). These compounds may function as agonists and/or antagonists of one or more of the disclosed estrogen receptors. Diseases which are mediated through one or more of these receptors include cancer (particularly breast, reproductive and other hormone-dependent cancers, leukemia, colon cancer, prostate cancer), reproductive (genito-urological) including endometreitis, prostatitis, polycystic ovarian syndrome, bladder control, hormone-related disorders, hearing disorders, cardiovascular conditions including hot flashes and profuse sweating, hypertension, stroke, obesity, osteoporosis, hematologic diseases, vascular diseases or conditions such as venous thrombosis, atherosclerosis, among numerous others and disorders of the central and peripheral nervous system, including depression, insomnia, anxiety, neuropathy, multiple sclerosis, neurodegenerative disoders such as Parkinson's disease and Alzheimer's disease, as well as inflammatory bowel disease, Crohn's disease, coeliac (celiac) disease and related disorders of the intestine. Compounds according to the present invention may also be used as contraceptive agents to prevent or decrease the likelihood that a woman will become pregnant as a consequence of intercourse.
The invention relates to compounds which have been identified as being agonists or antagonists to one or more of these receptors and represent compounds which may be used to treat any one or more diseases or conditions which are mediated through these receptors. These compounds, due to their ability to bind to GPR30 and/or one or both of estrogen receptors (alpha and beta) are useful for the treatment or prevention of the diseases which are mediated through GPR30 and/or one or both of the alpha and beta estrogen receptors.